Unrequited
by LauraCeleste
Summary: A vignette of lament. Zelda's side of the story. Part 1 in the series with "Resuscitation" and "Faithful"


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**:: Unrequited ::**  
A Legend of Zelda Vignette  
By LauraCeleste

Special thanks to my Beta Reader Hugh Jasse!! Thanks for believing in me!!

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**:: Foreword ::****  
**This is a small vignette from Princess Zelda's point of view concerning her feelings about her perceived-as-unrequited love and wondering   
what went wrong. It is quite different from my usual preference of fic because it is not blatantly a LZR. I write this fic as a concession of sorts to  
those who believe that the OOT Link is not made for OOT Zelda but for Malon. OOT Link can have Malon! The other Zeldas, those of the future, will  
see to it that the hero doesn't get away!  
And now, on with the story!

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We are the only two who understand how close we came.

Close to death, that is.

I remember him mostly as a boy, so young and open to the world. He approached me on my courtyard dais so frightened, his clothes and skin dusty from being caught sneaking in several times. He tried to look brave as I spoke to him, explaining things we as children shouldn't have had to worry about.

As children.

We were so very young then, only seven years old. It is hard to believe the things I put him through. He went off swinging that little sword to slay monsters many times larger than he with no complaint. What bravery I saw in him! What intelligence, what stamina! Yes, I watched him from a distance as he retrieved the sapphire and ruby for me. And then, when he brought them to the castle, I watched from the back of Impa's frantic horse as he readied that little sword and shield to defend us against the great dark Gerudo, even though there was little chance of him doing more than scratching the man's thigh.

I fell in love, then.

I wanted to turn back and save that curious little boy, but Impa told me that he had bought us time. Because of him, we would live to see tomorrow. 

But would he?

Of course he would. He was destined to enter the Temple of Time and grow up far too fast. He became a strapping young lad of seventeen and went on to save the world. And then, with my heart aching for all that he had seen, I sent him back to be a boy again. I hoped that he would remember me, and he did. We grew up together as great friends, though it was hard to explain to my father how we met. Eventually, he warmed up to the boy and gave him a room within our palace.

Twenty years hence, Link is no longer living at the castle. He moved to his very own house a year ago and accepted a guard's position at the castle gates. He rarely ever comes around any more, preferring to spend his off-days visiting his many friends in Kakariko and Hyrule Castle Town. I remember clearly the day he came to me with the request.

"Your highness...," he began, and I stopped him.

"Forgive me.... Zelda, I would like to request permission to leave the castle." Even as an adult, he was fidgeting and would not meet my eyes. 

"You're free to come and go as you please, Link. I cannot hold you back," I told him. And then he told me the truth.

"I want to move out of the castle." 

He was silent while the color drained from my face. "W...why?"

"I feel trapped here. I'm not free." His words were biting, but I knew how he felt. I felt the same. 

"I.." I started to speak but did not have the strength and instead sank into my chair, weakly holding my head. 

"I'm sorry, Zelda.." His voice trailed off, and I hid my face, not wanting him to see my tears. 

"Leave if you want to, then," I said, my words tinged with a frost I neither meant nor expected. I think it shocked and hurt him. What I wanted to do was wrap myself around him and beg him to stay, and to tell him the secret I had guarded across time and back, through two lifetimes. I could never love anyone but that child who tried so valiantly to fight Ganondorf with that little wooden shield and sword. 

But I did not tell him, and I let him go.

Now I am standing in the ballroom, watching my people pirouette and dip, happiness on their faces. Link and his wife are among them, I know, but I am hoping I'll miss them tonight.

"Zelda.." I hear his voice and my heart stops for a breathless moment. "I would like you to meet.."

I wake up lying in my bed. My handmaiden tells me I fainted, and I am surprised -- surprised that I did not perish there, for I felt as if I should have. I lost my little brave boy, and in his place found a proud married man with land of his own. He found his freedom, I suppose.

From my bed I watch the sun rise, and I wonder if it is a sign. I also rise and follow the light to my balcony, which looks out to the courtyard below. 

He is there, seated on a bench in my garden, looking pensive and sad. She is there, consoling him.

I wonder why he is crying.

~FINIS~

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Please review if you enjoyed this fic! I appreciate _anything_ you as a reader have to say. Thank you for reading!

~~@~~LauraCeleste~~@~~  
the_lone_gungirl@yahoo.com


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